Annual portfolio tastings

The last quarter of the year is always busy on the Hong Kong wine scene. In addition to the mega events like Wine & Dine and the Hong Kong International Wine & Spirits Fair, both in November, there are James Suckling’s Great Wines of the World and Great Wines of Italy, Wine HK and more. For a fee, wine lovers can taste hundreds of wines, among them many award-winners, some available in Hong Kong, some not, and some poured by the winemakers or owners themselves.

But amid all these high profile events it's easy to lose sight of local importers’ annual portfolio tastings. In October and November alone there were at least six such tastings: Wellspring, Kerry Wines, Armit Wines, Northeast, Altaya and BB&R's Italian portfolio. Usually the afternoon session is reserved for the media and trade while the evening is open to the public. And yes, for a small fee, wine lovers can taste a wide range of wines, some award-winning and some poured by the winemakers or owners themselves, and all the wines tasted are available, or soon to be available, in Hong Kong.

Mega wine events and high profile wine tastings are fun to go to, but portfolio tastings are often more practical for regular drinkers as they let you identify the strengths of each importer and the wines they carry, so you know where to get what wines for which occasion. And don’t think that most importers carry pretty much the same things; you’ll be surprised by the diversity of some and the specialities of others. Plus of course there are both big and boutique importers who stock very different styles and ranges. Some portfolio tastings also have winery representatives present who are happy to answer any questions related to their wines. Even when there are no wineries representatives, the whole team of importer staff is always on hand to assist. Because portfolio tastings are comparatively less crowded, you will also get more attention from the people behind the counter, a plus if you have a lot of questions.


Actually, not all annual portfolio tastings happen in Q4. There are some in other months, such as VinoVeritas in March, Continental Wines in May and Wine High Club in August. I’m sure there are a lot more that I haven’t mentioned here but keep an eye on the Wine Times HK Event page, or various Facebook pages: Hong Kong Wine Lovers, Hong Kong Wine & Food and HK Wine Fans. Of course the most direct way is to get onto the mailing lists of importers.

Happy New Year and Happy tasting!

Here are my impressions of the various annual portfolio tastings I have attended this year (Apologies if I missed anyone out):

• Altaya: Probably the biggest such event with some 70 wineries present. Heavily French biased but not short of famous names. Consumers were queuing outside one hour before it started!

• Armit Wines: A decent collection skewed towards the Old World. There were both big and small names and some from off the beaten track too. 

• BB&R Italian wine tasting: If you are a fan of small Italian wine producers, you'll love this. All wines were carefully selected by David Berry Green, BBR's Italian wine buyer.  

• Kerry Wines: Another big event featuring about 50 wineries mostly from the Old World (France, Italy and Spain). 

• Northeast: The most lively and cosy event with wines mainly from the New World and a range of craft beer and cider. 

• Red Mill: Mainly Lebanese wine, shown alongside Northeast’s. If you want something different, this is it. Definitely worth trying.

• VinoVeritas: Italian wine specialist. This tasting was memorable because it was held at Colour Living, a lifestyle store featuring stylish kitchen and bathroom furnishings. 

• Wellspring: A French dominated portfolio, but don’t be put off as its Bordeaux and Burgundy ranges are really good value. Look our for their Italian and German producers.

• Wine High Club: A fine wine merchant with a focus on France. Their sparklings and champagnes are definitely worth a try.  

Italian wine... hidden gems

I always love Italian wine so naturally will not want to miss any tasting opportunities. The most memorable recently was the Vino Veritas portfolio tasting at Colour Living.

The venue is a lifestyle store featuring stylish kitchen and bathroom pieces as home furnishings. I think it’s a pretty cool setting for wine tasting. People will remember it and hopefully remember the wine as well. A few guests certainly will—they were playing with an over-sized bathtub on display, and water suddenly came out...

VinoVeritas is an Italian wine importer founded by Michael Palij MW, who selects the wines personally and recently moved to Hong Kong. There were 17 wines for tasting and I was impressed by the selection—all good quality, very reasonably priced and not short of hidden gems.

I particularly like Vigneti Massa (Walter Massa) from Colli Tortonesi, a five-generation winery in Piedmont. Its ‘Costa del Vento’ white wine made from indigenous Timorasso is concentrated with lively acidity and a savoury palate that could probably age for a few years. According to Jancis Robinson’s Wine Grapes, Timorasso used to be the most praised white variety in Piedmont until it was taken over by the more productive Cortese (used in Gavi) when vineyards were replanted after phylloxera in the early 20th century. It is only in the last few decades that a handful of producers, notably Walter Massa, have started replanting and have doubled its vineyard area from 6ha in 2000. Timorasso, in Jancis’s words, is a "rare, high-quality Piedmontese earning renewed recognition".

Walter Massa also makes red wine. His ‘Bigolla’ Colli Tortonesi Barbera DOC 2003 is still young with generous black fruits and an opulent mouthfeel, very different from the typical Barbera on the market. Apparently, Walter met Michael some time ago at a restaurant and insisted Michael try some of his wine. Michael was impressed and the rest is history. We are lucky to have Walter's wines in Hong Kong.

Ten days later I moved east from Piedmont to Friuli where Roberto Cioaca from Heritage Wines treated us to an intimate lunch at the Piedmontese restaurant La Piola with the winemaker/owner from Masùt da Rive, another family winery with four generations of history, now run by the brothers Fabrizio and Marco Gallo. They inherit and preserve the values of their father, and only make wines that truly respect the environment and express the land. By the way, ‘Masùt’ is the family nickname and ‘da Rive’ means on the hill. They sensibly did not use the family name Gallo on the label to avoid stepping on the US Gallo family’s turf.

Back to the wines, the Ribolla Gialla, an indigenous grape from the region, is refreshing with a crisp acidity and creamy mouthfeel—a pleasant summer drink and a steal at less than $200. Friulano, another native grape which Fabrizio describes as a young cousin of Sauvignon Blanc, indeed has the shadow of Sauvignon Blanc but minus the pungent herbaceousness, which makes it more suitable for pairing with food such as crispy dishes or white meat and less tiring when drunk alone. By the way, it is also known as Sauvignon Vert or Sauvignonasse, a descendant of Sauvignon Blanc.

Masùt da Rive also has other wines, Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Nero (aka Pinot Noir), both not particularly the cup of tea of Ali Nicol, publisher of Wine Times HK, who was also at the tasting. Nevertheless, at the end, Ali was happily drinking both. Guess that says something about the wine!

Walter Massa is available from VinoVeritas.
Masùt da Rive is available from Heritage Wines.